This invention relates generally to cooking appliances and, more particularly, to cooking ovens, especially those utilizing electronic controls. More particularly, the invention relates to input devices for microcomputer-based oven controls.
Electronic controls, in general, and microcomputer-based controls, in particular, have been applied to various items, including appliances. Electronic controls have many advantages over the electromechanical controls they replace, for example, enhanced reliability and accuracy. The full potential of the electronic control, however, is not often realized. There is a tendency to merely emulate the functions performed by the electromechanical controls that the electronic control is replacing.
A cooking oven is generally capable of performing three functions: broiling food placed under a broiling element, baking food placed in the oven and self-cleaning of the oven by pyrolysis of food residue on the oven walls. Upon selecting a particular heating function, known control may provide the user with the capability of selecting additional subfunctions. For example, a user may be provided with the option of baking a particular food item for a selectable period of time and selecting a delay interval before the baking function is initiated. It is also known to allow the user to select a point in time that the baking interval is to terminate, which would typically coincide with the desired meal time.
Present controls for ovens are not intuitive in operation. For example, without consulting the user's manual, the user may not realize that the bake function must be selected in order to enter a cooking interval and a delay start or stop cooking time. Because the user must often consult the user manual in order to invoke all of the functions of known controls, the known controls are not convenient to the user. The result is that the user does not achieve full enjoyment of the capabilities of the appliance.